The Power of Words in Workplace Safety with Crista Vesel

In this episode, Mary Conquest speaks with Crista Vesel, an academic, author and safety communication specialist whose work focuses on how language influences learning and decision-making in safety-critical environments.

Crista explores why safety professionals often rely on familiar approaches even though they fail to produce meaningful learning. She explains how language used around incidents can steer inquiry in particular directions, narrowing what is explored and what gets left out.

Drawing on her pioneering work on learning reviews, Crista explains how certain language patterns can unintentionally shut down inquiry, reinforce blame and limit understanding. She contrasts this with approaches that support open and collaborative dialogue to give organizations deeper understanding of workplace safety.

This conversation offers EHS professionals practical insight into using language more deliberately, strengthening insights after events and creating cultures where workers share and organisations learn.